David L. Bevard, 73, of Bolingbrook, formerly of Galesburg, died on Christmas Day in Bolingbrook.
He was born September 7, 1952, in Weatherford, Texas, the son of J. Lee and Harriet J. (Burdette) Bevard. He married Connie Baldwin and together they had a son, Christopher. He later married Patricia L. Groff on August 8, 1992, in Galesburg.
He is survived by his wife of over 33 years, Pat; his son, Christopher (Colette) Bevard of Morton Grove, Illinois; his father, Lee Bevard of Galesburg; three sisters, Diane (Joel) Estes of Knoxville, Denise (Greg) Goad of Galesburg, and Dorene (Mike Garofolo) Prina of Thousand Oaks, California; brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Michael and Joyce Groff of Springfield, Illinois; and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his mother.
David was raised and educated in Galesburg, graduating from Galesburg High School in 1970. He went on to attend Northern Illinois University, where he studied journalism. He returned to Galesburg and began working for Maytag, where he worked for 32 years. During his time there, he served as president of the International Association of Machinist and Aerospace Workers Union. His concern for union labor led him to organize a movement to save the Maytag plant, eventually leading him to Washington, where he testified before the United States Congress in support of labor unions. He also worked for the American Federation of Teachers as a union organizer at colleges and universities, including Rutgers University. He then moved to Bolingbrook and began working for the Illinois Federation of Teachers, where he worked to organize unions mainly at charter schools. He retired on June 30, 2019.
Music was of most importance to David. He enjoyed a vast array of music ranging from R&B to jazz to rock and roll. Bruce Springsteen was a favorite. He was a member of the band Freedom Field and helped organize music festivals at Lake Storey.
David had a great interest in journalism and debate. He was considered an amateur historian to many. He was proud to work on political campaigns for Dan Hynes and Barack Obama. He will be remembered as having a generous heart, whether it was concerning an animal or cat, or giving money to homeless people in Chicago. In addition to listening to music, he enjoyed reading conspiracy theory books and watching old TV reruns. Of most importance to David was his love for family.
A celebration of life visitation will be from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, January 4, 2026, at Hinchliff-Pearson-West Funeral and Cremation Services of Galesburg. Cremation will be accorded following the visitation with burial later in Memorial Park Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made to the Knox County Humane Society or PAWS of Chicago (pawschicago.org). Online condolences and memories may be shared at www.h-p-w.com.
